Introduction
Migration and Human Trafficking have been grave issues
rattling the human community in recent times. Migration is, simply put,
movement from one place to another. It can be assisted or independent movement.
It can be international or within a country. It can be by land, sea or air. It
is everything from tourism to moving somewhere for work. “Expats” are also
migrants. It can be motivated by a dream of a better life, and it can be
something someone is made to do against his or her will. Migration can be for
survival and for pleasure. It can be easy or very difficult. A migrant’s aims
might be met, or s/he may face hurdles and unexpected outcomes. Migrants can be
old or young, any gender, any race, any nationality. Migration is very much
determined by economic and trade as well as by political relations.
Globalization fosters conditions that push people to migrate in search of work
opportunities. However, new security discourses have made that movement more
dangerous and complex, particularly following increased counter-terrorism
efforts.[1]
Human Trafficking:
A Definition of Human Trafficking:
“Trafficking basically means ‘trade’ especially illegal. It
is also described as ‘the transportation of goods, the coming and going of the
people or goods by road, rail, air, sea, etc. Trafficking in Persons shall mean
the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons,
coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception of the abuse of power or of a
position of vulnerability or of the giving or of receiving of payments or
benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another
persons, for the purpose of exploitation.”[2]
Human Trafficking is prominent basically for three reasons
namely, Sex Trafficking: using force, fraud, coercion, women and children are
made to indulge in commercial sex and can be seen in brothels, dance bars,
massage parlors, pornography etc, are moved from their respective places to
another place for financial and political gains. Labor Trafficking: replacing
people and children by use of force, fraud, coercion, a person is made to
provide involuntary labor service or is paid less than what is due. Organ
Trade: is another important issue shaking the Third World countries. Organ
trade is one of the fast spreading illegal trades and it mainly targets Children,
women, and others of the vulnerable sections of the society, since they are
healthier.
Human Trafficking is a criminal activity against the State
and against the Victim. It is against the state as it causes corruption, money
laundering, tax evasion and forgery of documents. It is also against the
victims as it leads to illegal detention; bonded labor; kidnapping; murder; injury;
sexual assault; rape; torture; cruelty; forced abortion; forced marriage; sale
of organs, etc.[3]
The 2009 Trafficking in Persons Report, released by the US
Secretary State, Hillary Clinton said: “India is a source; destination and
transit country for men, women and Children trafficked for the purposes of
forced labor and commercial sexual exploitation.”[4] The 2009
Trafficking in Persons Report observed that in recent years, there has been an
increase of sex trafficking to sub cities and India is a destination for women
and girls from Nepal and Bangladesh for the purpose of commercial sexual
exploitation. According to International Labor Organizations (ILO), Human
trafficking in India is estimated around 12.3 million mainly for the purpose of
commercial sexual exploitation.[5]
Factors responsible for Trafficking:
a. Poverty & Economic Hardship; b. Increased wealth gap;
c. Un-ending demand for prostitution; d. Free market but no effective laws to
tackle trafficking; e. Growth of criminal networks; f. Technology especially
Internet and satellite channels; g. Difficulty in prosecuting due to the
silence of victims[6]
Magnitude of the Problem in India:
In India, a large number of Children are trafficked not only
for the sex ‘trade’ but also for other forms of non-sex based exploitation that
includes servitude of various kinds, as domestic labour industrial labour,
agricultural labour, begging, organ trade and false marriage. Trafficking in
children is on rise, and nearly 60% of the victims of trafficking are below 18
years of age (NCRB, 2005). According to NHRC report on Trafficking of Women and
Children, in sex work, in India, the population of women and children engaged
in sex work is stated to be between 70,000 and 1 million, of these, 30% are 20
years of age. Nearly 15% began sex work when they were below 15 and 25%,
between 15 and 18 years. A rough estimate prepared by an NGO called End
Children’s Prostitution in Asian Tourism reveals that there are around 2
million prostitutes in India (20% among them are minors).[7]
Migration:
Definition of Migration:
Migration can be defined as
"the movement of people from one place to another in search of better
opportunities, better living and improved facilities. This process usually
happens with people moving from the rural to the urban setting paving way for
urbanization."[8]
Migration could also be a result of natural calamity or any political, social
or economical disaster.
There are two main types of migration: Internal migration,
i.e. migration within one country and secondly International migration, which
means the movement from one country to another. A good example of internal
migration is the movement from East Germany to West Germany. A good example of
international migration is the movement from third-world countries to Europe or
America.
Reasons for migration can be divided into two main aspects.
They are, ‘Push’ and ‘Pull’ factors.
‘Push’ factors are those in their own place, which force
people to move away. For example, there may be civil wars or wars in general in
the country, but political or religious oppression, climate changes, lack of
jobs or simply poverty are all important push factors.
‘Pull’ factors are factors in the target country which
encourage people to move. These include peace and safety, a chance of a better
job, better education, social security, a better standard of living in general
as well as political and religious freedom.
Movement for Migration:
The movement towards a destination may be either internal or
external migration. In the case of movement across borders, the need for
various documents, immigration and border checks influences the nature of the
trafficking process. Greater resources and planning are needed for trafficking
to be successful and so there is a great likelihood that organized crime
networks across borders, smugglers and forgers are involved. Traffickers may
use legal or illegal means of entry and exit.[9]
Migration has been part of human history since its origin. The Biblical
tradition is steeped in images of migration, from the migration of Adam and Eve
from the Garden of Eden.[10]
Causes for Migration:
1. Conflict-Induced Displacement:[11]
People are forced to flee their homes for one or more of the
following reasons and where the state authorities are unable or unwilling to
protect them there is armed conflict including 1.civil war; 2.generalized
violence; and 3.persecution on the grounds of nationality, race, religion,
political opinion or social groups.
A large proportion of these displaced people will flee across
international borders in search of refuge. Some of them may seek asylum under
international law, whereas others may prefer to remain anonymous, perhaps
fearing that they may not be granted asylum and will be returned to the country
from whence they fled. Many of the recent conflicts all over the world have
been internal conflicts based on national, ethnic or religious separatist
struggles. There has been a large increase in the number of refugees during
this period as displacement has increasingly become a strategic tactic often
used by both sides in the conflicts. In recent years, there has also been a
dramatic increase in the number of internally displaced person (IDPs), who
currently far outnumber the world’s refugee population.
2. Development-Induced Displacement:[12]
These are people who are compelled to move as a result of
policies and projects implemented to supposedly enhance ‘development’. Examples
of this include large-scale infrastructure projects such as dams, roads, ports,
airports; urban clearance initiatives; mining and deforestation; and the
introduction of conservation parks/reserves and biosphere projects. Affected
people usually remain within the borders of their home country. Although some
are resettled, evidence clearly shows that very few of them are adequately
compensated. This tends to be the responsibility of host governments, and
interventions from outside are often deemed inappropriate.
3. Disaster-Induced Displacement:[13]
This category includes people displaced as a result of
natural disasters (floods, volcanoes, landslides, land degradation, global
warming) and human made disasters (industrial accidents, radioactivity).
Clearly there is a good deal of overlap between these different types of
disaster-induced displacement. For example, the impact of floods and landslides
can be greatly exacerbated by deforestation and agricultural activities.
Refugees: The term ‘refugee’ has a long history of usage to
describe ‘a person who sought refuge’ in broad and non-specific terms. However,
there is also a legal definition of a refugee, which is enshrined in the 1951
United Nations Convention Relating to the Status of Refugees.
Article 1 of the convention defines a refugee as a person
residing outside his or her country of nationality, who is unable or unwilling
to return because of a well founded fear of persecution on account of race,
religion, nationality, membership in a political social group, or political opinion’.
Some 150 of the world’s 200 or so states have undertaken to protect refugees
and not return them to a country where they may be persecuted, by signing the
1951 Refugee Convention and/or its 1967 Protocol.
Asylum Seekers: Asylum seekers are people who have moved
across an international border in search of protection under the 1951 Refugee
Convention, but whose claim for refugee status has not yet been determined.
Internally Displaced Persons: The most widely used
definition of internally displaced persons (IDPs) is the one presented in a
1992 report of the Secretary-General of the United Nations, which identifies
them as ‘persons who have been forced to flee their homes suddenly or
unexpectedly in large numbers as a result of armed conflict, internal strife,
systematic violations of human rights or natural or man-made disasters, and who
are within the territory of their own country’. Sometimes referred to as
‘internal refugees’, these people are in similar need of protection and
assistance as refugees but, do not have the same legal institutional support as
those who have managed to cross an international order. There is no
specifically mandated body to provide assistance to IDPs, as there is with
refugees.
Migrants-A Growing Concern:
There are a lot of Syrian migrants dying every day in
different parts of Europe and a whole Tamil race who went as migrants from
India to Srilanka were destroyed ruthlessly. All over the world migrants suffer
humiliation, abuse and even face death due to the mentality of the native
people and their retaliation towards these vulnerable minorities. “The long
standing, rapidly growing reality of global migration presents another
opportunity to ground theological analysis in a specific social location that
emerges from the “joys and hopes, grieves and anxieties” of many marginalized
people today.
The various councils and Episcopal conference have notable
writings about the Pastoral Care of the Migrants. Pope Francis has spoken out
frequently in defense of migrants worldwide since taking over as head of the
Roman Catholic Church nearly three years ago. On Francis’ first trip outside
Rome, the pope visited the Italian island of Lampedusa, where migrants from
Africa trying to reach the European Union, frequently drown in rickety boats.
“He has deep interest in the plight of migrants”, His visit to Lampedusa is a
very palpable way of showing his solidarity with immigrants. In September 2013,
in honor of the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, Pope Francis called for “a
change of attitude towards” immigrants away from “attitudes of defensiveness
and fear”, urging greater acceptance.[15]
This has to be dealt with proper care and awareness has to
be given both to the migrants and the host countries. Since migration cannot be
stopped and the issue of migration has been prevalent from age old days, the
society can be educated to handle such crisis situation. A helping hand by the
Church can make things get smoother and even solve many issues. Thus the issue
of migration is closely knitted with the issue of human trafficking.
Relationship between Trafficking and Migration:
Trafficking uses the process of migration. This usage occurs
at the structural (conceptual) level as well as at the process (operational /
action) level of the two phenomena. At the structural level, the migration
phenomenon involves a shift in the physical space from a place of origin to a
place of destination and its multiple associative aspects provide the basis and
the context for trafficking. It is this population movement, moving for
different duration that provides the backdrop for trafficking. The
circumstances and situations that influence migration are usually examined in
terms of push and pull factors.
Embracing people and Re-building homes: A Mission Agenda
‘Embracing and Re-building’ are important aspects in
Christian mission. This has also been the core value of the Holy Bible. The
struggle of the people is where the quest for God begins. The visibility of
people on the streets begging to every vehicle that passes, is a sign the
Church has ignored or less addressed the issue of migration and human
trafficking. The homeless on the streets, for example, are the ones through
whom one can see God as based on Matt 25:35-36.[16] How has the
church responded to the issue of homelessness in India? Yes, the church has
projects for the poor, orphans, persons with disability, girl children etc.
However, the increasing number of persons on the roads lying at night and in
search of shelter has shown that the Church is doing either nothing or very
less in this regard. What about those trafficked and abused in various manners
and left to beg on the streets? If Jesus was that man who was hungry, thirsty
and naked lying on the road, then is it not the responsibility of the church to
move out of its comfort zone and reach out to that person outside the Church's
gate? On the other hand, Should the church respond to this issue only because
of Jesus’ portrayal as a homeless?
It is an imperative of the church to respond to the crises
of the world with diligence and precision. The world has seen humongous number
of people migrating, and deaths caused by and for various reasons. Will the
Church in India open its door and ‘get dirty’ as in the words of Pope Francis,
who called the church to become dirty and embrace people and give them shelter
to re-build homes? Jesus poses this as a challenge to the notion of how to
serve God. The mission to the migrants and the survivors should be the mission
agenda. This mission agenda will enrich the church’s mission to the margins
into a mission from the margins that the church often speaks. A church as
taught is not merely the physical structure or the institution, but we
ourselves. It is in our renewal of minds and constant participation in the
struggles of the people that we will understand what and how God wills us to be
agents of mission in the world today. Therefore, let us join hands as one
church to reach out to the migrants and the victors of human trafficking and
embrace them and help each other in re-building this beautiful home we call
‘earth’.
Bir Pal Singh & Gargi Rajvanshi,
“Trafficking in Human Beings: A Critical Analysis” in Trafficking of Women
and Children in India, edited by Awashesh Kumar Singh, Atul Pratap Singh and
Parvez Ahmed Khan (New Delhi: Serials Publications, 2012), 170.
